Sao Paulo

Sao Paulo is a cosmopolitan, most populous city and financial center of Latin America. The inheritance of immigrants and the richness of Brazilian culture form a unique diversity in this city where many parts of the world meet.

The city of Sao Paulo was founded in 1554 by Fathers Jose de Anchieta and Manoel da Nobrega after deciding that the region was suitable for the installation of a college for the catechization of indigenous people. Most of the Bandeiras, exploration expeditions in the Brazilian territory in search of mineral riches, began in the city, constituting itself like one of its symbols.

The importance of Sao Paulo in the national context began with the planting and the sale of coffee in the late 19th century, when this commodity became one of the main pillars of the Brazilian economy. Because of this, immigrants from various countries settled in the city and in neighboring cities in search of a better life in the coffee plantations; most of them were Italians, Germans, Arabs and Japanese - it is in Sao Paulo that the largest Japanese community outside Japan is located.